Saturday, September 11, 2010

I am not entirely sure how far I ran this morning, and for someone as type A as I am about running that could have been a challenge. It was supposed to be a 4 mile long run to begin my training for my race in December. But my watch was having trouble finding a satellite so I just kept going south with the plan to run down to about Ground Zero and cut over to the park and run back up. I knew it was 9/11 but I had no idea I would end up right in the middle of the Memorial Service that early in the morning and yet there I was standing in a coral with dozens of people, listening to the names being read of those who lost their lives that morning 9 years ago. What a privilege to be here on the anniversary and to be reminded of that day. To mourn with those who still mourn. To remember how our country was changed on that day, some ways for the better, some not so much. Although it was by accident, I feel honored to be here and to be a part of this great city and I hope we will never forget that day. Say a prayer today, for the families, the survivors, the rebuilders, this city and nation and yes even the people who did this. They probably need it most of all. God Bless.

Friday, September 3, 2010

The City never sleeps and I am starting to feel the same way. So much to DO, so much to SEE. Here are a couple highlights. Went to the Highline last week to watch the sunset. The Highline is and old elevated transport track that the city has turned into a walking park. It is decorated with plantings, viewing areas and seating. Perfect place to watch New Jersey melt into the setting sun and one of the many performance art shows that were taking place along it's steps.

A few days later I decided to check out the Museum of Natural History. I still had a few tickets to use from my completely tourist purchase of the City Book. SO off I went to cavort among the dinosaur bones. There were some cool things to see there, lots of animal exhibits, a beautiful mineral and gem area and I even watched the planetarium show. I was not the only one there who had not seen a show like that since Pink Floyd had a Planetarium show way back in the day. It was a little different experience.......and on to the Dinos!!

Recently a friend and I were discussing relationships and having both come into our own and learned a few things over the years we of course have them all figured out. Long pause.....yeah right. But that is besides the point. I think this part we actually have a pretty good handle on. We talked about how often people get into relationships expecting the other person to “make them happy”. Or they think that “if only I am with that person I will be happy”. We concluded that really isn’t the case and it really isn’t the other person’s job to “make you happy”. I firmly believe that it is my responsibility to figure out what makes me happy so I can then communicate it to you and hopefully you will do what you can to facilitate that and vice versa. Because if I don’t even know what makes me happy, how the heck are you supposed to know? And vice versa. Here’s an example. Jane likes ice cream but she isn’t sure which flavor makes her happy but she starts dating Joe and unconsciously expects him to know what flavor makes her happy. And when he gets it for her they will live happily ever after. Do you see how ridiculous that is? I mean seriously, how is Joe supposed to know which flavor will be Jane’s favorite? He could spend weeks trying to figure that out, even years. There are 32 flavors at Baskin Robbins alone and don’t even get me started on gelato and sorbet and Haagen Daaz. So here’s my thought. Why doesn’t Jane take the time to try all the flavors and figure out for herself which one is her favorite? “Hey this cookie dough is pretty good and I like it and it makes me happy”. “MMMmmm, wow I have never tasted chocolate like that before”. You see my point? I hope so. Cause half the fun in life is figuring that stuff out, as scary and confusing as it can sometimes be. But it’s also very rewarding when you know what you like and what you want and you can communicate that to another human being and if he likes you back, he will probably do his best to take those tidbits and run with them. I have a hunch that would make Jane happy too. The beauty of it, is you can change over time. Chocolate doesn’t have to be the be all, end all of your personal favorites. Maybe Jane and Joe try Lavender Vanilla one night and lo and behold, she has a new favorite. Well that’s ok too. That is the joy in growing and changing. And for the record my favorite is Black Cherry gelato, with Vanilla Bean running a very close second. Bisous